Food and Wine 2011: The Do's and Don'ts Edition

We all probably know by now that I think the EPCOT Intentional Food and Wine Festival is a huge DO in my book.

I only go every single year, and refer to the festival as it's own season. This year I was getting worried that it was going to be the year that I became the DON'T by missing it for the first time in 6 years! First it rained, then I was sick, and then I ran a triathlon.

But wait, attending a huge food festival is totally a DO after a big race, so bestie Jenna and I loaded up after my tri (and a blessed 2 hour long nap!) and headed out to the Happiest Place on Earth to meet up with a few other friends to eat, drink and be mousey merry all around the world!

Here are a few of my tips to make your experience at F&W a huge DO!

DO stop by the awesome cranberry bog, sponsored by Ocean Spray.

DON'T be too disappointed that the cute Ocean Spray guy (Justin Hagan) isn't there, even if he is your future husband.

Isn't he just the cutest? 

I've heard from sources that in "real life" he is just as goofy as his commerical character!

DO stop by the Canada stand to get a cup of Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup.

This may have possibly been the best batch I've had, as this soup is a staple for me at F&W. 

DON'T mind my chipped "tiger striped" nails, leftover from Homecoming week at my school of employment! 

DON'T bother stopping at "neighboring" Greece, because they took both the Spanikopita and the Boutari Santorini wine off the menu this year. Boo.


DO get your seafood and comfort food fix all in one amazing dish with Ireland's Lobster and Scallop Fisherman's Pie.

This small portion is incredibly filling, has a fantastically complex flavor profile for such a traditional and rustic dish and is even prettier mixed up!

DON'T get suckered into standing in the left hand line at the Ireland stand....it is the beer line and all they have is Guinness. I adore Guinny, but I'm not about to stand in line for 25 minutes for a beer I can get at nearly any decent bar/restaurant!

DO brave the line at France. The Escargots Persillade en Brioche and Sparkling Pomegrante Kir are a must every year!

DON'T be sad that the rest of the usual "festival crew" (aka the drunk and rowdy boys) are too busy doing tequila shots in the "not so secret anymore and now packed" taqueria in Mexico to come join you, because you won't have to buy double plates for sharing this year! More for me = a huge DO.

DO get your beer fix at the Belgium stand with a refreshing Hoegaarden because the line is short, the smells of waffles are free (and totally satisfying!) and Belgium beer is delicious! 

DO get excited about the new Portugal stand, at first.

DON'T bother with the Calamari Salad with Fennel, Smoked Paprika and Olive Oil because while it sounds tasty and refreshing, it's just an oily mess with no hint of fennel.

DO recover from the Portuguese mess by stopping at the Hops and Barley stand to pick up the Sam Adams 16th Anniversary Festival Beer-Boston Ale and Pumpkin Mousse with Ocean Spray Craisins and Orange Sauce.

DON'T worry about the let down of the 16th anniversary festival beer, since it tastes just like regular Sam Adams Boston Lager, because the Pumpkin Mousse is really the star of the show.

I would have named the "mousse" a trifle, since it also included some layers of spice cake, but what ever you call it every tiny bite was a tasty combination of classic fall flavors, without being too sweet. I would certainly get this again and am considering making something similar for an upcoming work social.

DO ask a friendly fellow park goer to take the picture of your group, as we all know "if you don't take a picture, it didn't happen."

DON'T forget to jump back up on the bench, since your cute boots won't be shown off if you are standing.

DON'T bother getting the Kiebasa and Potato Pierogie with Caramelized Onions and Sour Cream if you've ever "met" the lovely Mrs. T and her frozen pierogies, because I'm fairly certain that these are the same thing.

I've raved about this dish in the past, but I've declared this year to be the last that I visit the Poland stand.

DO stop at the South Korea stand and get the Lettuce Wrap with Roast Pork and Kimchi Slaw if you've taken my advice and skipped Poland. DO email me to remind me of how wonderful it is, how bright and tasty, the perfect balance of savory, sour and spicy with a wonderful crunch. I knew this dish was a DO when I tasted it for the first time in 2010, so DON'T make my "I ate too much already" rookie mistake.

Any day spent with my best friends, enjoying tasty treats and eats is a DO. So, DON'T miss out on all the yummy tastes and "travels" that EPCOT has to offer during the International Food and Wine Festival.

Love to all,
~the, "I guess all those years of Glamour subscriptions are rubbing off on me" gal, Jess

Frighteningly Good Harvest Brownies

Boo!

If you need some back up for all that bagged candy, waiting longingly for the trick-or-treaters to arrive tomorrow evening brownies are always a good choice.

But brownies sneakily laced with pumpkin? Now that is a trick that is actually a delicious treat!

And if pumpkin brownies couldn't get any better, these are totally fool proof and nearly prep free.

You will need:

      1 box of your favorite brownie mix

      1 egg

      ~16oz of pumpkin puree 

And then:

      Mixie-mixie it all together and bake according to the instructions on the brownie box. 

      Cut and top with whipped cream

Happy Halloween!

Love to all,
~the little pumpkin goblin gal, Jess

PS. This is the first time in years that I haven't had a full blown, costumed to the nine's Halloween. But no worries, I got plenty of costume time in during homecoming week. Enjoy a few shots with my students.

Wacky Tacky Tourist Day

(I'm on the far left of the frame)

Airport Security/Neon Day

(I was the only one who really went with the "security" bit, but I loved my costume as an air traffic controller!)

Learning to Tri: MyFirstTri at The 6th Annual Orlando Women's Triathlon

It was hard. It was encouraging. It made my legs scream. It made my lungs cry for air. It made me smile. It made me a triathlete.

Post Race, rocking my race tee, with Eleanor, my beloved bike.

Here is the story of My First Tri at the 6th Annual Orlando Women's Triathlon. Enjoy the ride. (and swim, and run!)

The Swim: 17:17

The beautiful sunrise over Lake Mary Jane. 

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

It was a beautiful, but chilly, morning on Saturday, October 22nd 2011 and as promised, I was shivering from both the 60 degree F air and a fair share of nerves. My Mom and her friend Anni, aka my cheering squad, had made a wrong turn on the highway, resulting in a 15 mile detour, so I was all alone on the beach of Lake Mary Jane, watching the sunrise and listening to last minute instructions from the race director.

As the pre-race meeting broke up Mom arrived, sweet sign in tow, and just in time to snap a few photos before my wave took off into the water.

Showing off my body markings.

 

At 7:20 am (ish-we were ahead of schedule) my wave of "My First Tri-ers" wadded ankle deep into the rather warm water of the lake.

"What buoy are you hitting?"

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

After one last buoy check, the horn sounded and we were off into the water. As planned, I ensured that I was the last one into the water, to avoid any flying limbs from my fellow competitors. One girl ahead of me freaked out when we were only chest deep in the water. I called out to her "it's ok, you've got this!" but she powered past me to the shore. 

Left Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

As soon as I was fully in the water, I found my breathing to be incredibly rapid, shallow and on the cusp of ragged-aka-out of control. I flipped on my back for a few strokes to calm down, but every time I would turn back on my stomach and start to "crawl" without putting my face in the water I would start to breathe too quickly again. This problem continued for the entire swim, and I spent most of it on my back, doing the "squid."  (note to self: learn how to do a proper backstroke).

 I ended up staying at the back of the pack for the entire swim, since I couldn't get into a strong rhythm. A really great lifeguard in a kayak hovered around, calling out encouragement and helping me sight, since I was on my back. I did contemplate asking for a noddle at one point, but since you legally can't advance with one, and I can get my breath just as easily on my back I just kept doing what I was doing. 

At one point, after I had made the last turn and was really starting to slow, I was just staring up at the sky, noticing how lovely the day was becoming, I thought "hey, this is nice, I could say out here all day" but then I remembered "um, you have another 20km bike ride and a 5km run waiting for you, hurry up!" Frustratingly, when I flipped back on my stomach to try and power my way back to the shore, the shoreline was rotating around on me. Ack. Talk about instant sea-sick. Back to the safety of my back I went.

Eventually I got back to shore and staggered my way out of the lake. I literally was cross-stepping like a drunk! 

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

Run from water to transition zone: 2:41

I don't know which sadistic member of the race committee thought a 1/2 mile run to the transition area would be perfect after an open water swim, but at the moment I sure could have punched them. I jogged the 1/4 mile along the beach, but once we turned on the asphalt of the park driveway I ended up hobbling/walking along to the transition itself. 

Transition 1: 3:10

Wow! Can't breathe, my feet are wet and grassy, I forgot to untie my sneakers. Are we having fun yet?

The Bike: 57:11

As I predicted, the bike portion of the race was my strongest leg. I just settled into a groove as best I could, and lordy, with the headwind we were all fighting for a good 85% of the ride I needed that groove!

My pace was generally around 14mph, but at one point I slipped down to 10mph! Luckily, I made up for that slow time, when I kicked it up to 17mph for a while, when the wind was (finally!) at my back.

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

Overall, I had a great ride, and passed a few other competitors, but by the end of the ride my feet felt like frozen blocks of ice, so I was very happy to turn back into the park and hit the bike finish line! 

Transition 2: 2:04

The Run: 45:00

The run, also as expected, was really tough. I was very under trained for this leg, since I haven't been running much at all.  This is when I was thankful for the cool weather, because my cardio control was actually pretty good. But my legs, oh my legs. I've always said my legs have a mind of their own, as in I'll decide to run to a particular place, but a good 10 paces before my "finish line" my legs will just stop!

I actually had a bit of the opposite on this run. I would suddenly start running again, and it felt great! The course was slippery in places, so that was interesting. I literally got confused at one point, when a volunteer seemed to be directing me into the woods, off the trail. I actually stopped moving and just said, "what?"  He assured me it was correct and with a shrug, off I went. 

Only to see the the finish chute looming in the distance! I picked up my pace and with a huge smile on my face (and fighting back tears, for some reason) I crossed the finish line of my first triathlon!

See me in the distance?

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

Total Time: 2:07:25

I ran straight into my Mom's arms and started fighting back tears, all the while fighting to get my breath!

Aren't these photos of Anni and Mom by Gray Quetti Photography fantastic?

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

The entire race course, Moss Park and the surrounding neighborhood, was abundant with Sand Hill Cranes, aka Space Chickens, which were yet another reason my run went so well, so I had to take a picture with one!

One of the best things about this race experience was the support. Everyone on the course was so supportive and kind. The phrases "you got this" "hang in there girl" "you are about to become a triathlete" hung heavy in the air all over the race grounds. But one woman made a huge impact on me.

Meet Jessica:

Photo Credit: Gray Quetti Photography

In addition to having a really awesome name, this wonderful woman was the most inspiring/supportive person during the race. She was competing in the Olympic distance and passed me both on the bike and the run portions. Both times though, she said something encouraging and was so incredibly sincere. Oh and she won the entire Olympic division! I tried to find her after I finished to say thank you, but I couldn't find her. So, thank you Jessica, you really made my race! 

Oh and in case you were wondering I finished 4th in my age division. And yes, I will for sure be doing another triathlon in the future; in fact I've already been looking up sprint distance tri's in the spring. In the meantime I'll be spending more time on the road, both on foot and two-wheeling, plus a lot more time both in the pool and open water! 

Love to all,

~the "hey, I'm a triathlete, look at me!" gal Jess 

Spooky's Black Cat Cafe

Can you feel it? Can you?

Halloween is a mere week away, friends!

So, it's about damn time I told you about Spooky's Black Cat Cafe, in the Milk District of Orlando.

(in case you are going, "milk district, wha?" like I was when I first heard the term, it's just little nickname Orlandoeans have given the neighborhood around the T.G. Lee plant. When I questioned if that was a kosher way to name a neighborhood, I was told the point is mute. You can't argue with a stubborn Orlando native. Trust me on this.)

Back to Spooky's. It's fun, it's funky and it's damn tasty.

Oh and did I mention they have a great draft list? 'Cause they do.

I don't 100% remember what this was, something by Cigar City? (I actually visited Spooky's back in the summer, I was just saving this post for Halloween!) Regardless, it was tasty and I believe I had a second round!

We split the Tour of India appetizer sampler.

From the menu: A trio of Baigan Bharta style eggplant curried dip, Pav Baji style vegetable curry dip and Patra style aloo leave, curries and a tamarind roll with a side of curried yogurt, toasted Naan bread, and today’s crisps.

It was mighty tasty, and great fun to play with, as most Indian inspired dishes are. I liked the veggie curry dip the best, but ended up going to town mostly on the tamarind roll, because the rest of my party didn't care for it. It was strongly spiced, but I enjoyed it with the yogurt.

For my entree I got the cheese board of the day. This has become one of my favorite "go to" meals, and the spread put out by Spooky's did not disappoint: brie, wensleydale with cranberries, an herbed goat log and some variety of aged, hard cheese that had a nice bite; all served with strawberries, blueberries, crackers and crouton-thingies (yes, that is a very advanced culinary description. Also, I did not care for said "crouton-thingies). Overall, I demolished this plate, because it was that good!

Ok, well I actually shared some with my friend Jesse, because he ordered my second choice, The Fungi Fun Pizza, and then we taste swapped.

One blurry half, as described on the menu: Ricotta and garlic base, fresh mozzarella, shitake, crimini, and portabella mushrooms. I'm glad of two things here: One that my best boobies friend lets me taste test with her hubby and two, that I stuck with the cheese plate. This pizza was, well, seriously and overwhelmingly fungi-lous. And coming from the gal that ate wild mushrooms at the tender age of 4 because she loves them so much (and the rest of that story is for another day, thank you) is really saying something. Holy moly mushrooms!

If you are visiting Orlando for a spooky good time this weekend, in celebration of All Hallow's Eve, trick or treat your way though the Milk District and have a pint and a bite at Spooky's....if you dare!

Muahahahahah.

Love to all,
~the creepy little cafe lovin' gal, Jess